Indoor exercise brand Wattbike has reported a £5 million loss in its latest company accounts, marking three consecutive years in the red.
The company posted its financial results covering the year to 30 September 2024 on Companies House last week, writing that it had continued to face challenges following the Covid pandemic.
Wattbike (Holdings) Limited’s losses for the year amounted to £4,914,947 million. This brought an improvement on the losses suffered in the two previous years: £6.9 million in 2023 and £8.8 million in 2022.
The company’s last profit came in 2021, when it posted £806,056, after the industry enjoyed a boom due to increased exercise interest during the Covid pandemic.
Since then, the sector has felt “suppressed levels of consumer demand” and “inflated product and supply chain costs”, Wattbike’s chief financial officer Peter Lay wrote in the company’s accounts.
“Despite the strength of the Wattbike product, the recovery of the sector as a whole has been slow,” Lay continued.
“These factors continued to contribute to a disappointing 8% revenue reduction during the financial year, though the directors took strong positive steps to drive improvement in gross margin as well as reduce operating costs.”
Wattbike’s turnover for the accounting period was just short of £12.5 million. This was outweighed by the cost of sales (£8.7 million) and administrative expenses (£5.4 million), which include building costs, utilities and staff salaries.
The company’s turnover for 2021, its last profitable year, was more than £32 million.
“The market has continued since the end of the financial year to be challenging,” Lay explained, referring to 2025.
In July this year, Wattbike was acquired by Interactive Strength Inc., joining the US-based company’s portfolio of fitness brands alongside CLIMBR and FORME. Interactive Strength is listed on the NASDAQ as TRNR.
“The directors have confidence that, as part of this new group, Wattbike can be well positioned to deliver sustainable growth over future periods,” Lay wrote.
Cycling Weekly contacted Wattbike for an update on the company’s performance in the year after the accounting period. CEO Stephen Loftus responded that progress has been made “toward a return to profitability”.
“During the year, margins improved materially, the cost base was reduced, and the foundations for future growth were strengthened through the successful launch of two major new products,” the CEO said.
“In September 2024, the Proton bike was introduced, expanding the company’s reach into the broader home health and fitness market. This was followed in February 2025 by the launch of Air Pro, a next-generation commercial air bike featuring an integrated touchscreen, rolled out across elite sport, education, and gym operators. The financial benefits of these launches are expected to be increasingly realised in future periods.”
Wattbike’s indoor trainers first launched in 2008, developed in partnership with British Cycling, and have since been used by thousands of professional athletes, including track cyclists, footballers and rugby players.
Today, the Nottingham-based brand competes for customers in a busy home training market alongside companies like Peloton, Zwift and Wahoo.
